Manifestations of Prosociality in Relationship to Each Other in Siblings of Preschool and Early Age

Abstract

The work is aimed at identifying the features of prosocial behavior in sibling pairs of preschool and early age children. The materials of an empirical study obtained on a sample of three two-child families are presented. The study involved children aged 2 to 5,5 years (M=3,917) and their mothers aged 25 to 37 years (M=29,7). Two pairs of siblings were of different sexes (older brother — younger sister and older sister — younger brother) and one pair consisted of two sisters. The study was conducted by observing the behavior of children, interviews with mothers and a series of experimental situations developed by E.O. Smirnova, V.M. Kholmogorova. The results obtained suggest that children of both preschool and early age are capable of showing prosociality in relation to sibling. Their prosocial behavior manifests itself in the form of instrumental help, empathy and altruism.